Best telescope for under $200? - General

Hey Facepunch, (I just remembered I had this account, wow is it ever old) What's the best telescope I can get for under $200 bucks? I have my eye on [URL="http://www.telescope.com/control/telescopes/dobsonian-telescopes/orion-starblast-4*5-astro-reflector-telescope"]this one[/URL] but I'm not sure if this is the best I can get for my buck. Any help? (P.S. Not any refractors. If you know anything about astronomy, you should know that refractors are usually terrible.)

[url]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Coronado-Solarmax-90-Solar-Telescope-Hydrogen-H-Alpha-/190408993368?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Telescopes&hash=item2c5542aa58[/url] It's a great deal ;)

[quote=hazardous melon;22929680][url]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/coronado-solarmax-90-solar-telescope-hydrogen-h-alpha-/190408993368?cmd=viewitem&pt=uk_telescopes&hash=item2c5542aa58[/url] it's a great deal ;)[/quote] [b]under 200 dollars[/b]

[QUOTE=Hazardous Melon;22929680][url]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Coronado-Solarmax-90-Solar-Telescope-Hydrogen-H-Alpha-/190408993368?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Telescopes&hash=item2c5542aa58[/url] It's a great deal ;)[/QUOTE] Wow, that actually really is good for the price. I might buy it.

Anything by Meade is great.

Oh, also, it can't be on eBay and if it is the auction has to last until about August 1st or so because my birthday is on the 7th and I want a telescope. Oh, come on. On FP with a thread with 12 viewing and no response in forty minutes? :raise:

[QUOTE=zatox9632;22929865]Oh, come on. On FP with a thread with 12 viewing and no response in forty minutes? :raise:[/QUOTE] Happens a lot, to be honest. This website says you'll need a slightly larger budget (£200-£400) to see cool stuff. [url]http://www.astrocentral.co.uk/telescope.html[/url]

[url=http://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Telescope/dp/B002NH38V6]Here is a really good one I found on Amazon.[/url]

[QUOTE=AutoTurret;22931306][url=Here is a really good one I found on Amazon.]http://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Telescope/dp/B002NH38V6[/url[/QUOTE] Looks like your joke is kind of a failure.

[QUOTE=PrismatexV8;22929788]Anything by Meade is great.[/QUOTE] Yeah, if you can afford it get something nice from Meade.

Yeah, but my sister who's buying me this says that her budget for my birthday present would be about $200. Would the one I listed previously be adequate for a beginner scope?

[url]http://cgi.ebay.com/20604-NIOB-Meade-DS-2114AT-TC-Altazimuth-Reflector-Tel-/360275885010?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53e21dbbd2[/url] Get this one, really. [editline]11:07PM[/editline] [url]http://cgi.ebay.com/MEADE-114mm-A-SERIES-REFLECTOR-TELESCOPE-114EQ-ASTR-/370266812362?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item56359f2fca[/url] Cheaper one, but not as good.

[QUOTE=mercurius;22932168][URL]http://cgi.ebay.com/20604-NIOB-Meade-DS-2114AT-TC-Altazimuth-Reflector-Tel-/360275885010?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53e21dbbd2[/URL] Get this one, really. [editline]11:07PM[/editline] [URL]http://cgi.ebay.com/MEADE-114mm-A-SERIES-REFLECTOR-TELESCOPE-114EQ-ASTR-/370266812362?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item56359f2fca[/URL] Cheaper one, but not as good.[/QUOTE] Oh, also, it can't be on eBay and if it is the auction has to last until about August 1st or so because my birthday is on the 7th and I want a telescope. Anyway, is the scope I mentioned any good?

[QUOTE=zatox9632;22932314]Oh, also, it can't be on eBay and if it is the auction has to last until about August 1st or so because my birthday is on the 7th and I want a telescope. Anyway, is the scope I mentioned any good?[/QUOTE] Doesn't look much different compared to the ones from Meade and the parabolic mirrors of all three ones seem to be of the same size (4.5" reflector). I guess yours might be the right one, because of it's price. I guess you should go for it, Orion isn't bad at all.

My uncles neighbor has a fucking observatory on his house. Rich bastards.

Thanks for the info. Now, what do you think the highest (useful) magnification I could get out of it? And also, what do you think the highest magnification possible would be with it?

Here is a better list on the technical specifications: [url]http://www.hometrainingtools.com/starblast-4-5-eq-reflector-telescope/p/AS-TSTAREQ/[/url] You might want to check if it's anywhere cheaper, but $200 sounds good so far. [editline]11:38PM[/editline] A tripod like in the link I've posted might come in more handy if you're in the garden.

*Sniff* The universe is so vast and awesome. If it didn't cost so much...

What could you see in the sky at about 200X?

[QUOTE=zatox9632;22933368]What could you see in the sky at about 200X?[/QUOTE] Well sounds trivial, but anything that's big enough. I could imagine you could see Saturn's rings or some beautiful nebulae about ~ 2 mio light-years away. The further away the dimmer it will be and the smaller. Just in case, here is a table on weather conditions: [url]http://cleardarksky.com/csk/[/url]

[QUOTE=mercurius;22933444]Well sounds trivial, but anything that's big enough. I could imagine you could see Saturn's rings or some beautiful nebulae about ~ 2 mio light-years away. The further away the dimmer it will be and the smaller. Just in case, here is a table on weather conditions: [URL]http://cleardarksky.com/csk/[/URL][/QUOTE] I know I'm really getting specific, but how large would the moon, Mars, Venus, Saturn, etc. look? And how large would a Galaxy or a nebulae look? Sorry I want to know, I'm just curious.

It's hard to explain, imagine a very tiny star speck to be as large as the moon to the normal eye. It's basically like this.

[QUOTE=mercurius;22934033]It's hard to explain, imagine a very tiny star speck to be as large as the moon to the normal eye. It's basically like this.[/QUOTE] So something about this big (The star circled): [IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/starrynight.png[/IMG] Would turn into something about this big? (Probably smaller than this): [IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/starrynight2.png[/IMG]

Buying a telescope is a waste.. Unless you have perfect weather conditions every day.. Take a trip to a telescope that can define details of planets in real time, worth more than buying it

It isn't a waste. It is awesome. :colbert:

[QUOTE=zatox9632;22934264]So something about this big (The star circled): [IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/starrynight.png[/IMG] Would turn into something about this big? (Probably smaller than this): [IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/starrynight2.png[/IMG][/QUOTE] Sorry, I can't really explain it. You have to take 200x literally I guess, because it feels different to from person to person anyway. [QUOTE=Akayz;22934391]Buying a telescope is a waste.. Unless you have perfect weather conditions every day.. Take a trip to a telescope that can define details of planets in real time, worth more than buying it[/QUOTE] Real time? That sounds rather odd to me, because with a telescope you always look into the past as light travels a quite a while through all this vastness. And how is a telescope a waste if you can't use it everyday? No one really wants to spend [I]every[/I] night with hours of watching stellar objects.

[url]http://www.telescopes.com/telescopes/reflecting-telescopes/celestronastromaster114eqreflector.cfm[/url] I have this telescope, and it's very good for a beginner. I'm probably going to buy a better lens for it (the best one it comes with is 100x) and some lens filters. It would probably bring the total price to around $200.

[QUOTE=mercurius;22935794]Sorry, I can't really explain it. You have to take 200x literally I guess, because it feels different to from person to person anyway. Real time? That sounds rather odd to me, because with a telescope you always look into the past as light travels a quite a while through all this vastness. And how is a telescope a waste if you can't use it everyday? No one really wants to spend [I]every[/I] night with hours of watching stellar objects.[/QUOTE] Not a waste of time.. I meant a waste of money... Sure it would be nice to be able to gaze into space at any time you please, but it always depends on skill and conditions to get any thrill out of it. The only good thing out of it is to see interesting things which is the whole point,, i am not convinced you'll be able to get a money's worth on a consumer product..

I think it's a nice hobby, but I guess youre right. Good telescopes go into the thousands, nothing an amateur could afford, but rather something for an enthusiast.